In a twist for fans, January’s AFC wild-card matchup between the Miami Dolphins and eventual champion Kansas City Chiefs was only available via streaming — on Peacock. Although people were first confused about why they couldn’t watch the game on TV, it proved a success for Peacock with a ratings bonanza.
So regardless of how inconvenient fans — and players alike — consider the new broadcasting push, streaming is here to stay. Ready your wallets.
Following last season’s success, Peacock and the NFL are intertwined again this season. The streaming-only slate kicks off with Friday’s game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Green Bay Packers in São Paulo, the first international game of 2024. It also marks the NFL’s first game in Brazil.
Why are games on Peacock?
NBC started streaming “Sunday Night Football” online in 2008, and they were the first NFL partner in the U.S. to stream the Super Bowl (in 2012). Peacock became a natural fit for NBC as companies aim to make streamers profitable while navigating the treacherous transition from linear TV to digital. To get more signups, streamers need more high-quality, exclusive content.
Peacock’s first exclusive NFL game featured the Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Chargers on Dec. 23, 2023. It averaged 7.3 million viewers and peaked at an average of 8.4 million.
The Chiefs-Dolphins playoff game turned out to be a massive viewership success. Nielsen custom fast national data showed 23 million viewers watched across Peacock, NBC stations in Miami and Kansas City and on mobile with NFL+.
Chiefs CBs L’Jarius Sneed and Trent McDuffie break up a pass intended for Dolphins WR Tyreek Hill in the AFC wild-card game. (Photo: Jay Biggerstaff / USA Today)
How many games will be on Peacock this season?
Friday’s matchup in Brazil is the only Peacock exclusive of the regular season. The game, which kicks off at 8:15 p.m. ET, will also be broadcast on NBC in Green Bay and Philadelphia, and on mobile devices with NFL+.
Peacock will stream 22 regular-season games total, including 18 “Sunday Night Football” games, a Thanksgiving night game between the Dolphins and Packers and a Week 16 game between the Chiefs and Houston Texans on Saturday, Dec. 21.
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Will there be a streaming-only playoff game this season?
Yes — but via Amazon Prime Video.
A year after Peacock broadcast a wild-card game, Amazon gets its turn in 2025. Amazon Prime Video will also be the exclusive home of “Thursday Night Football” beginning in Week 2 and will broadcast the Black Friday game between the Las Vegas Raiders and Chiefs on Nov. 29.
Are any other games exclusive to streamers?
Netflix and ESPN+ will also have their moment as exclusive home of an NFL game.
In Week 7, when the NFL plays two games on Monday night, one — the Los Angeles Chargers against the Arizona Cardinals — will only air on ESPN+.
Netflix, meanwhile, landed two Christmas Day games. The Chiefs will play the Pittsburgh Steelers at 1 p.m. ET, while the Ravens and Texans begin at 4:30 p.m. ET.
For info on how to stream NFL games on Fubo, click here.
(Top photo of Peacock commentators Jac Collinsworth, Tony Dungy and Rodney Harrison (from left): Corey Perrine / Florida Times-Union / USA Today)
